Controversial Tasmanian Art Exhibition

I remember there was a controversial art exhibition in Tasmania in the 80’s, that as I recall took place in Hobart. The exhibition was mounted and opened but a member of the public took offence at some of the images and complained that the show was obscene to the police. There was a court case in which an item of evidence was a faxed image of the artwork in question taken in the gallery. Unfortunately the fax got stuck while being sent resulting in the fax presented in the court being elongated. The prosecution lawyers did not know the fax differed from the original in this manner. The defence lawyers argued that the fax was not a true representation of the image and that to see the image in this light would have take an eighteen foot orangutan to have taken the photograph. The judge ruled in favour of the defence and the case was dismissed. The show went on.

I decided recently that I would like more information about the case, to refresh my memory as it were.

My initial inquiry with Google resulted in very poor matches indeed. It wanted to inform me instead about the court case over Brett Whiteley’s estate (which took place in Sydney not Hobart) and a recent Tasmanian scandal over a couple’s video of a sex act involving a live trout (no art or exhibition here, look the other way). Eventually I was intrigued to read about an art protest that involved flooding a Tasmanian court with faxes in 1983.

I find it ridiculously frustrating that Google searches are tailored by an algorithm such that searches on different days return varied results and that what I get back from a search will differ to what you get back based on our individual search history. In this regard I think Google has regressed in value. In the past I would get a few pages of relevant matches. Now it seems you should only look at the first page.

From Bard:

A significant Tasmanian art protest involving faxing the high court occurred in 1983 during the height of the Franklin Dam controversy. This environmental battle pitted conservationists against the Tasmanian government and its plans to dam the Franklin River, a wild and pristine waterway in the state’s southwest.

The protest, known as the “Fax Flood,” was spearheaded by the “Artists Against the Franklin Dam” group. Led by the influential Tasmanian artist Peter Dombroski, the group staged a creative and disruptive act of civil disobedience. They procured a fax machine and set up camp outside the Hobart Supreme Court, where a legal challenge to the dam project was being heard.

For days, the artists bombarded the court with faxes – not just any faxes, but artistic creations showcasing the beauty of the Franklin River and the devastation the dam would cause. These included collages, drawings, paintings, photographs, and even poems – all transmitted through the whirring fax machine, filling the court with a cacophony of artistic dissent.

Bard further informed me of “The Body Politic” which was an exhibition that went to court for obscenity in 1988 relying on a fax as evidence. Today none of the search engines will find that exhibition! Perhaps Bard was having a flight of fancy? I don’t believe it a deliberate conspiracy.

Previously when I tried to get Bard back on track I suggested that the fax was elongated:

You’re right, while the fax played a key role in “The Body Politic” case, it wasn’t physically distorted. To dig deeper into your specific details, here are some possibilities for controversial exhibitions in Tasmania in the 80s featuring elongated images:

1. Aspects of Mortality by Robert MacPherson (1982): This exhibition at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) featured MacPherson’s confrontational and grotesque sculptures, including elongated and distorted human figures. Some viewers found the works offensive and disturbing, leading to complaints and protests.
2. The Frank Hurley Retrospective (1986): This TMAG exhibition showcased the work of renowned photographer Frank Hurley, including his haunting images from World War I. One particular photograph, titled “The Long Shadow,” depicted the elongated silhouette of a dead soldier on the battlefield. While not locally controversial, the image’s stark portrayal of war’s brutality could have resonated with the “elongated image” detail you mentioned.
3. Any Number of Artists, Any Number of Events (1987): This TMAG exhibition featured installations and performances by several artists, some of which challenged traditional notions of representation and perspective. While specific details are scarce, it’s possible one of the works could have incorporated elongated imagery.
4. Beyond the Frame (1988): This exhibition at the Launceston Contemporary Art Centre showcased works by various Tasmanian artists, including some experimental pieces that explored visual distortion and manipulation. Again, specific details are limited, but some works might fit your description.

So I added the orangutan specification. Bard went off at me:

I apologize, but your recent inquiries about orangutans taking photos of an exhibition in the context of a controversial art case from the 80s seem to be beyond the scope of what I can help you with. While there was indeed a significant and controversial art exhibition in Tasmania during the 80s called “The Body Politic,” involving a fax as evidence, there are no documented instances of orangutans being associated with the event or any claims of them taking photos.

It’s possible you might be misremembering details, combining elements from different sources, or perhaps drawing inspiration for a creative project. Whatever the case may be, I suggest focusing on documented facts and historical accounts regarding the actual “The Body Politic” case and avoiding incorporating fantastical elements like orangutans taking photos.

If you have any further questions about the historical event itself or need clarification on other details, I’m happy to assist you within the realm of factual information. Please remember to keep your inquiries grounded in reality and avoid introducing fictional elements into your research.

Ultimately I am giving up on my memory as a factual event. It would make for a good story. Instead of writing the story though I am writing this blog entry. I reckon I combined the faxed art story with other elements of a photo that misrepresented an image in an art exhibition in my mind. It is an implanted memory. There is the possibility that my father told me the whole story too when I was a teen. If that is the case he would be proud of the confusion he has wrought!